Arsenal Nearing £18m January Deal for Ever Banega as Agent 'Travels to London'

Arsenal appear to be edging closer and closer to the January signing of Sevilla and Argentina midfielder Ever Banega after the latest gossip from Spain suggests

Arsenal appear to be edging closer and closer to the January signing of Sevilla and Argentina midfielder Ever Banega after the latest gossip from Spain suggests that the player's agent has travelled to London this week.

Banega has been billed as a potential replacement to Aaron Ramsey in the Gunners midfield, with the Welshman set to leave as a free agent at the end of the season or as early as next month if rumours of a Paris Saint-Germain offer prove to be accurate.

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According to Spanish network La Sexta, Banega's agent is currently in London. It is not absolute definite that the apparent trip is related to an Arsenal transfer but the circumstances and prior news certainly make it seem more likely than not. Banega himself is said to be in Buenos Aires.

Banega, who was surprisingly overlooked by Argentina coach Jorge Sampaoli at the World Cup until the must-win final group game, is thought to have a €20m (£18.1m) buyout clause, putting the 30-year-old in the 'low hanging fruit' category.

While Arsenal recruitment is handled by Sven Mislintat these days, the club's reported interest in Banega is likely to be heavily influence by coach Unai Emery, whose relationship with Banega extends back a decade to 2008 when they first worked together at Valencia.

Banega had been at Valencia for six months when Emery was appointed coach and they proceeded to spend the next four years together until the latter left the club. They were then reunited in 2014 when Banega joined Emery at Sevilla, winning two Europa League titles.

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Banega briefly left Sevilla for Inter during the 2016/17 season, only to return after one year.

He would complement an Arsenal midfield unit already featuring Granit Xhaka, Lucas Torreira, Matteo Guendouzi and Mohamed Elneny.